The tree in the center of the home will continually change. This allows for the inner courtyard to be more of a gallery for the home than just a space to let light in.

The single-story home is held by stilts above a sloping hillside in a forest in Japan. The 10.85 meter square building has a 4.4 meter square courtyard centered within the plan of the home. This box-like home holds a very special present for the owners as they enter for their weekend vacations. The courtyard frames a section of the forest, including a singular tree, to create another room to be occupied within the house. This center courtyard, as well as the exterior windows, allow for this home to be almost completely day-lit, as well!

Lightly stained cedar-paneled interior walls divide the rather open floor plan of the home at interesting angles. This also helps to frame the views within the home so the occupants can better enjoy the story being told by the landscape beyond. Though TNA designed the exterior of the building to maintain a regimented appearance, the interior is also wonderfully broken up by the interior walls to create a freedom in chaos.

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4 Comments

Jeanne FrostMarch 19, 2015 at 8:45 pm

This home has all the qualities to make the perfect living space. Natural light, connecting with nature, low impact upon the forest, spaciousness and peaceful feeling. Beautiful statement. I wish you much success!

Philippe InemerNovember 9, 2014 at 9:28 pm

Ce batiment se trouve où exactement au Japon, peux t’on le visiter???

CompassionIsTheSolutionSeptember 10, 2012 at 3:33 am

I loved the simplicity and flow of this home so in tune with the forest. Very beautiful. Regarding the kitchen: Is there a refrigerator? An oven? How do you make tea?
Personally, I’d need a soft, nestlike chair couch/resting place. How about creating a ‘nestlike’ chair made of softened cedar bark or bark from local downed trees plus soft animal hair and lichen and moss to make a cushioned, gentle place for rest.

Where currently is the bedding and bed/mattress/sleeping mat? Most importantly, where is the bathroom…or do you ‘go outside?’ Where/how do you shower/bathe? (is there a stream/water source of some kind close by?

hoboSeptember 8, 2012 at 7:01 pm

A beautiful excercise, but would it feel welcoming after a hard week? A photo of the sleeping areas would have been helpful; I think I could just barely make out a pair of beds through the glass…